Bad Blood (LP)

Bastille

Amoeba Review

09/02/2013

Somewhere between Coldplay and Mumford & Sons lies the debut release by Bastille, who produce smart yet widely appealing Britpop that could reside as easily on rock radio as it would rubbing shoulders with Rihanna and Frank Ocean. They unveil a key Afropop influence early on, on opener “Pompeii,” whose chants underpin Coldplay-style grand sentiments. Bad Blood is thankfully upbeat, but even the ballads, like the pretty “Things We Lost in the Fire,” have an epic nature that steal your interest. They still have a ways to go before reaching U2 levels of poignancy—“These Streets” is no “Where the Streets Have No Name”—but Bad Blood is certainly a fun debut—just try not dancing along to “Weight of Living Pt. II.” (Where’s part I and why isn’t it here??) A pair of early singles reappear here, too, buried in the album—the skittering “Icarus” and stately “Oblivion,” nicely displaying both sides of the Bastille coin, from jumpy radio pop as informed by the likes of The xx to epic ballads that jerk the tears from your inner teen. No “bad blood” here—just a great pop record.